Leader pledges stronger arsenal to fend off U.S.
SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to build up his country’s nuclear arsenal as a “powerful deterrent” to the United States, state media reported, hours after President Trump said that “only one thing will work” in dealing with the isolated country.
Kim made his comments Saturday at a meeting of the Central Committee of his ruling Workers’ Party, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Sunday. He also reconfirmed his policy of simultaneously seeking progress in his nuclear weapons program and pushing for economic growth in the face of expanding international sanctions.
The remarks indicated that Kim had no intention of retreating under U.S. pressure even as South Korean officials and analysts worry that the North will conduct a major weapons test to observe the anniversary on Tuesday of the founding of the Workers’ Party.
North Korea’s nuclear weapons are a “powerful deterrent firmly safeguarding the peace and security in the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia,” Kim was quoted as saying, citing “protracted nuclear threats of the U.S. imperialists.”
Trump tweeted Saturday that 25 years of talks and deals with North Korea had come to nothing, making “fools of U.S. negotiators.” He added, “Sorry, but only one thing will work!”
When asked by reporters to elaborate later Saturday, he said: “You’ll figure that out pretty soon.”
In response to North Korea’s tests of nuclear bombs and intercontinental ballistic missiles, the Trump administration has pushed for punitive economic measures while indicating that military solutions were also on the table.
North Korea has launched a series of powerful missiles since July, including two intercontinental ballistic missiles and intermediate-range missiles that flew over Japan. The North also conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test last month, deepening fears that the country was approaching its stated goal of capability to deliver nuclear payloads to the mainland U.S.